The First Realistic Sex Doll in History

In the Russian Empire, it was called the "Hussar's cold." In medieval Spain, the "Gallic disease." In other countries, it was known as the lover's malady. We are speaking, of course, about syphilis, the unchanging companion of soldiers throughout time. Occupying France in 1940, Germany, like any victorious side, faced an epidemic of syphilis in its army. To stop it, the authorities of the Third Reich did not tighten discipline or introduce total bans on liaisons with local women. Instead, they took an inventive path. Hitler commissioned the development of a doll that would be more beautiful than any Frenchwoman.

Feldhygieneprojekt — Field Hygiene Project

"Our duty is not to allow the military to risk their health for fleeting intrigues." This is how the Head of the SS, Heinrich Himmler, described the project in his diaries. He led the production of the means to protect German soldiers from the "shameful disease."

The project's development was kept top secret. The creation of the "Aryan beauty" was concealed by the Nazis.

The creation of the artificial woman was entrusted to Franz Tschakert from the German Museum of Hygiene. Shortly before the war, he had made a transparent, anatomically correct female mannequin. It was made of silicone and fully replicated a woman's anatomy, becoming a sensation at the time.

Tschakert was tasked with making Borghild perfect in every way: from appearance to the construction of internal parts. Realistic sexual organs, skin indistinguishable from the real thing, and a flexible body were just a small part of the requirements imposed by the Nazis on the project.

The doll's appearance had to strictly conform to Aryan beauty standards: snow-white skin, bright blue eyes, and long, light hair. Moreover, to ensure that soldiers preferred her to local women, she had to possess a voluptuous bosom, plump lips, and long legs. After formulating the necessary requirements, Tschakert's team began looking for a model whose appearance would underpin Borghild. Initially, they wanted to cast the Hungarian actress and symbol of Axis beauty, Kat von Nagy, but she flatly refused to participate. Neither a large fee nor close connections with the army's high command helped. The same situation occurred with the other models on Tschakert's list. The team then independently created ten unique faces with different features and proceeded to testing. Select members of the SS were shown faces to identify which made the most significant impression. All results were meticulously recorded and analysed by an entire department of psychologists.

Just imagine how important this project was to the Nazis. For its implementation, they not only spent vast resources but also pulled their best soldiers from the front to test the doll's image on them.

It's unknown how many Reichsmarks and how much time was spent on producing the doll. But according to Himmler's recollections, he was delighted. The doll, named Borghild, turned out to be magnificent. Tschakert specifically emphasised that she was not merely a woman or a solace between battles, but a real battle companion. The figure of the doll was perfect. To achieve such a result, the development team invited leading athletes of the Reich. Borghild's legs were muscular, long, and slender. Her waist was waspishly slim, and her bosom large, firm, and excitingly protruding. In all the conducted tests, the result was astounding. Even disregarding her "inanimate" nature, the Aryan beauty made an indelible impression on those tested. Tschakert received the highest praise from the Reich's leadership, and Hitler personally wrote him a letter of thanks.

A Beauty That Became a Dangerous Burden

The first batch of Borghild came off the factories in 1941. They were immediately sent to the personal staff of the garrison on the island of Jersey, located near the shores of Normandy. After a month of use, Tschakert's team arrived at the garrison to gather data. The results were so outstanding that Hitler ordered another five thousand dolls for the SS combat units that same evening. The deployment of the dolls to the troops fighting on the front line began. The Germans did an excellent job but overlooked a major factor in their tests. The relaxed garrison service of coastal defence was far different from what the fighting ground units faced. Therefore, Borghild's fate did not go as planned.

The Blitzkrieg was gaining momentum. The Nazis were pushing further and further east, and provisioning shifted from a series of solvable tasks to an endless wave of problems. Officers simply discarded Borghild to make room in the supply trains for essential provisions. Moreover, the mere possession of the doll, both by Soviet and Allied soldiers, became associated with one thing – "Here's an SS soldier." And for captured SS members, there was often only one short path – to the nearest wall for execution. Therefore, beauty Borghild transformed from a battle companion into a burden, and a deadly one at that, if her owner was captured with her. As a result, in 1942, the "Field Hygiene Project" was frozen. The dolls that had not yet been deployed to the troops were burned during the destruction of Dresden. With that, the story of Borghild ended, but the story of her younger sister began.

From Younger Sister to Niece

The economy of the Reich continued to produce civilian goods until the last months of the war. Military factories that made ammunition also produced dishes. Wheels for armored vehicles were made alongside garden watering cans. And such a successful project as Borghild also got its non-military counterpart. The SS's battle companion had a "younger sister." The "Aryan beauty" inspired German toy manufacturers to create the first doll that idealized the female figure. Thus, the "Lilli" doll was born. It was produced for the civilian population and sold in toy stores until May 1945.

Years after the war, a couple of American entrepreneurs, Ruth and Elliot Handler, came to Germany in search of inspiration. Their company, Mattel, was engaged in the production of picture frames and was successful. However, the couple was looking for something radically new. Their inspiration came from the "Lilli" doll, which they found in one of the pre-war toy stores. Ruth Handler and her husband, Elliot Handler, are the creators of the famous "Barbie" doll, which forever changed the world of dolls for girls. According to writer Donald Graham, the most authoritative researcher of the "Barbie Phenomenon," it was "Lilli" that inspired them and laid the foundation for the most famous doll in the world.

History is the best comedian, and the plots it writes are impossible for humans to replicate. Thus, a Nazi project aimed at maintaining the combat readiness of the bloodiest SS units became the true progenitor of a toy that now resides in almost every girl's home.